It has long been a problem in the art world to authenticate paintings or other works of art. Such authentication is often desired when a painting is not signed, although it also may apply when the painting bears a signature. Such authentication is typically based on the opinion of an expert. Numerous elements are included in evaluation by an expert. These are typically subjective determinations by the expert, drawing on the expert's experience and other background. Exemplary areas for evaluation by experts is the painting subject matter, and the general style or technique employed. Analysis by an expert may also include study of how the paint is laid down on the canvas, such as whether the paint is thick or thin also including study of the brush stroke technique.
Consequently, these means for evaluating paintings for authenticity are almost exclusively dependent on the subjective judgement of experts. There has been little or no truly objective technique for judging the authenticity of a painting. The only objective techniques known to this inventor are evaluation of age of a painting as to which there is some scientific methodology and analysis of paint composition. But age determination gives only a very wide range of estimates. Analysis of paint composition can be useful; but, paint composition analysis, like age is not artist specific. The present invention contributes a novel and objective method for evaluating authenticity of a painting which is specific to the particular artist.